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Is It Too Late For Your Summer Body?

Even though the official start to summer is a little over a week away that doesn’t mean you’re going to be left out in the cold if you haven’t been training and dieting the past few months. There’s no doubt that you’re going to be off to a late start if you’re now just getting serious but as the old cliché goes, “it’s better late than never.”

Summer seems to be the favorite season for the majority of people simply because the weather is beautiful, the days are longer and there are more fun things to do. And many of these things usually entail you to attend in slim fitting clothes that are quick to reveal your current body composition. So all the hard work (or all the no work) you’ve been putting in the winter and spring months is going to shine through.

It’s quite tempting to forgo attending many summer events out of embarrassment of your current state of body physiology, but I’m going to do what I can to get you on the right track to your summer body even though time is limited. Just like with all procrastination you’re going to have to put in some extra effort if you want to see some results fast. And this extra effort will mean some hard work. Yippy!

Let’s start with your training programming. I enjoy going on 30+ minute jogs now that the weather is consistently fantastic, but I’ll be the first to admit it’s not going to do much for rapid fat loss. To burn fat as fast as possible you’re going to need to create a lot of physiological stress on your body so it’ll use more calories to fuel itself. The best way to do this is through short bursts of intense exercise with short rest periods in between.

Summer Body Strategy #1: Sprinting

Jogging obviously isn’t going to fit this need so we’re going to have to step up our game to sprinting. Now, when I think of sprinting I see an image of Usain Bolt running his ass off at the Olympics. This is a great example of the style of intense exercise you should be doing to maximize your metabolism.

But there’s one more very very important factor you have to consider before you start running like a mad person down your local high school track.

You have to ask yourself what your body is physically capable of.

Most people who haven’t worked out in months (or ever) shouldn’t start with traditional running sprints like they’re going for the gold metal. If I were to train the average sedentary person I would most likely put them on a stationary bike and let them “sprint” for 30 seconds, and follow that with 30 seconds of rest before repeating.

This way I am able to slowly progress their training for the following reasons.

prevent injury

determine current physical conditioning

prevent mental “burnout”

burn some FAT

If that 30/30 split was too easy for them then I would bump it up to 40/20 and see how they do. If that’s still challenging after a couple sets then I would stick with that until they able to progress up to the next level. This is how “sprinting” should be done for the general population who are wanting to use it for it’s highly successful fat burning potential.

Summer Body Strategy #2 – Weight Training

Along with implementing a sprinting program into your training routine also add in weight training as well. Weight training along with short rest periods are going to produce a lot of lactic acid in your body which will cause your body to release fat burning hormones. Most women shy away from weight training, but when done correctly can crank up your metabolism while also toning your body. Who wants to look “skinny fat” anyway? (If you don’t know the term “skinny fat” imagine the appearance of a deflated balloon.)

Summer Body Strategy #3 – Eat Clean

Along with these training strategies eliminate the following foods from your diet:

sugar

grains/starches

dairy

I call these the Terrible 3’s because they’re largely responsible for fat gain. Replace these foods with lean meats, good fats and green vegetables and you’re good to go. Don’t stress out about calories instead eat until you begin feeling the first signs of satiety. Make sure you also drink a ton of water like you’re giving a humpback whale a run for its money.

Implementing the above strategies into your lifestyle can create some dramatic results in a short amount of time. But none of these strategies is going to work unless YOU do. It’s going to take some hard work, planning and discipline but if you want it bad enough then you’ll get there. Just because summer is around the corner and you’re not in your beach body doesn’t mean you have to throw in the towel. Your summer is just beginning.